Take a Quiz on Hindu Diaspora

Unique rituals and festivals of Balinese Hindus, that are not found in India, include those related to death of a loved one followed by cremations, cockfights, tooth filings, Nyepi and Galungan.

When was the first Ganesh visarjana festival held in Sydney with clay Ganesha being immersed in the ocean at Stanwell Tops beach?

2004

Never

1991

1971

1991 – Hindus from Sri Venkateswara temple Helenburgh, Sri Mandir and newly formed Vishwa Hindu Parishad came together to celebrate Ganesh Visarjana festival, first large scale public celebration of a Hindu festival in Sydney, Australia. Visarajana of clay Ganesha idols was performed at Stanwell Tops beach. The program was coordinated by Dr Balasubramaniam and Surinder Jain.

In Bali, the word Pura means?

Town

A Suburb

Temple

Village

The Balinese temple is called Pura. These temples are designed on square Hindu temple plan, as an open air worship place within enclosed walls, connected with series of intricately decorated gates to reach its compounds.[45] Each of these temples has a more or less fixed membership; every Balinese belongs to a temple by virtue of descent, residence, or affiliation. Some house temples are associated with the family house compound (also called banjar in Bali), others are associated with rice fields, and still others with key geographic sites. In rural highlands of Bali, banua (or wanwa, forest domain) temples in each desa (village) are common.[46]

Khmer empire of Cambodia were Hindu kings? Yes/No

Yes

No

Cambodia was first influenced by Hinduism during the beginning of the Kingdom of Funan (first to sixth century ). Hinduism was one of the Khmer Empire‘s official religions from 1st century to 13th century. Cambodia is the home of the holy temple of Angkor Wat, the largest Hindu temple in the world. The main religion adhered in Khmer kingdom was Hinduism.

Cambodia was first influenced by Hinduism during the beginning of the Kingdom of Funan (first to sixth century ). Hinduism was one of the Khmer Empire‘s official religions. Cambodia is the home of the holy temple of Angkor Wat, the largest Hindu temple in the world. The main religion adhered in Khmer kingdom was Hinduism.

Hinduism came to Fiji as Hindu contract workers started arriving there from 1879 onwards? Yes/No

Yes

No

Hinduism in Fiji has a following primarily among the Indo-Fijians, who are descendants of indentured workers brought to Fiji by the British, as cheap labor for colonial sugarcane plantations.[1] Hindus, along with Indian Muslims, Christians and Sikhs, started arriving in Fiji starting with 1879 through 1920 when slavery-like indenture system was abolished by Britain. Some Indo-Fijians came to the island nation in the 1920s and 1930s. Fiji identifies people as Indo-Fijians if they can trace their ancestry to the Indian subcontinent, but not necessarily India. Most of the Hindus in Fiji, however, are of Indian descent.

When did the first Malay Hindu state appear in Malaysia?

It never happened

2nd century

18th century

8th century

It is unclear when the first Indian voyages across the Bay of Bengal occurred. Conservative estimates place the earliest arrivals to Malay shores at least 1,700 years ago.[11] The growth of trade with India brought coastal people in much of the Malay world into contact with Hinduism. Thus, Hinduism, Indian cultural traditions and the Sanskrit language began to spread across the land. Temples were built in the Indian style and local kings began referring to themselves as Raja and more desirable aspects of Indian government were adopted.[12]

Which religion replaced Hinduism as the main religion of Khmer in 13th century?

Islam

Theravada Buddhism

Christianity

The empire’s official religions included Hinduism and Mahayana Buddhism until Theravada Buddhism prevailed, even among the lower classes, after its introduction from Sri Lanka in the 13th century.[10] Since then, Hinduism slowly declined in Cambodia, and finally being replaced by Theravadan Buddhist as the major faith in the kingdom.

Most Hindus in Singapore today are ethinic Indians? Yes/No

No

Yes

Hindu religion and culture in Singapore can be traced back to the 7th century AD, when Temasek was a trading post of Srivijaya empire.[1] Chola empire of 10th century brought Hinduism to Singapore.

Hindus in South America, are chiefly the descendants of Indian indentured labourers? Yes/No

Yes

No

Hindu communities are found in several countries of South America, but they are strongest in Guyana and Suriname. There are about 550,000 Hindus in South America, chiefly the descendants of Indian indentured labourers in the Guianas. There are about 270,000 Hindus in Guyana, 150,000 in Suriname, and some others in French Guiana. In Guyana, Hindus form 35% of the population.

According to the Australian census of 2016, Hinduism was the fastest growing religion of Australia? Yes/No

No

Yes

Hinduism (during 2016-2018) is one of the fastest growing religions in Australia mostly through immigration.[3] Hinduism is also one of the most youthful religions in Australia, with 34% and 66% of Hindus being under the age of 14 and 34 respectively.[4]

The Indus river is a holy river to many Hindus, and the Government of Pakistan periodically allows small groups of Hindus from India to make pilgrimage and take part in festivities in Sindh[24] and Punjab.[25]

Did Khmer Hindu society of Cambodia had the Hindu four varna system for classifying the society? Yes/No

No

Yes

The Khmer Society was arranged in a hierarchy reflecting the Hindu Varna system. The kshatriyas — royalty, nobles, warlords, soldiers, and warriors — formed a governing elite and authorities. Other social classes included brahmins (priests), traders, artisans such as carpenters and stonemasons, potters, metalworkers, goldsmiths.

When did the first Hindus came to Australia?

1970AD

800AD

2000BC

1890AD

First Hindus, it is believed, came to Australia about 4,000 years ago and brought new technology like fire, cooking and new advanced stone tools.[ref].

A 2013 study by the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology found that there was a migration of genes from India to Australia around 2000 BCE. These new arrivals came at a time when dingoes first appeared in the fossil record, and when Aboriginal peoples first used microliths in hunting. In addition, they arrived just as one of the Aboriginal language groups was undergoing a rapid expansion.[27][28]

Hinduism was the main religion of Cham people in Central and South Vietnam between 2nd and 15th century? Yes/No

No

Yes

The Champa civilisation was located in the more southern part of what is today Central Vietnam, and was a highly Indianized Hindu Kingdom, practising a form of Shaivite Hinduism brought by sea from India. Mỹ Sơn, a Hindu temple complex in central Vietnam built by the Cham people is still standing albeit in ruins in Quảng Nam Province, in Vietnam.

From the 2nd to the mid-15th century the Chams populated Champa, a contiguous territory of independent principalities in central and southern Vietnam. They spoke the Cham language, a Malayo-Polynesian language of the Austronesian language family. Since the 15th century under the growing Vietnamese kingdom from the north, Champa was conquered and reduced as a polity. The Chams were subsequently absorbed by the Vietnamese and today are recognised as one of the many ethnic minorities of Vietnam.

Most Malaysian Hindus are Tamils? Yes/No

Yes

No

Majority of Malaysian Hindus are Tamils. Most Malaysian Hindus are settled in western parts of Peninsular Malaysia. Indian Hindus and Buddhists began arriving in Malaysia during ancient and medieval era. A large number of Hindus from South India were brought to Malaysia by British colonial empire during the 19th and 20th century, as indentured labourers to work on coffee and sugarcane plantations and tin mining; later they were deployed in large numbers, along with Chinese Buddhists, on rubber plantations. The British kangani system of recruitment, designed to reduce labour turnover and enhance labour stability, encouraged Hindu workers to recruit friends and family from India to work in British operations in Malaysia. The kangani system brought numerous Tamil Hindus into Malaysia by early 1900s.[14]

Why did last of the Java Hindu Kings retreated to Bali?

Floods

Earthquakes

Territorial loss to Islamic Sultanate

To expand their empire

Among Hindu kingdoms in Java, Majapahit kingdom was the largest and the last significant Hindu kingdom in Indonesian history. Majapahit was based in East Java, from where it ruled a large part of what is now Indonesia. The remnants of the Majapahit kingdom shifted to Bali during the sixteenth century after a prolonged war by and territorial losses to Islamic sultanates.[23]

In which country is Ramakien (Ramayana) is a popular epic and Ayutthaya (Ayodhya) is a city named after the birth place of Rama?

The Thai city, Ayutthaya near Bangkok, is named after Ayodhya, the birthplace of Rama. Numerous rituals derived from Brahmanism are preserved in rituals, such as use of holy strings and pouring of water from conch shells.

The Chams Balamon (Hindu Brahmin Chams) form a majority of the Cham population in Vietnam while most of the remainder are Cham Bani followers of Islam. The term Balamon is considered to have been derived from Brahmin,[41] however another study suggests that 70% are considered to descend from the Nagavamshi Kshatriya caste[42] (pronounced in Cham as “Satrias”), and claim to be the descendants of the Champa Empire.[43] In any case a sizeable proportion of the Balamon Hindu Cham are considered Brahmins.

Hindu temples are known as Bimong in the Cham language and the priests are called Halau Tamunay Ahier.

Which country held until 1935, a swing festival known asTriyampavai-Tripavai whose name is derived from names of two Tamil language Hindu chants: Thiruvempavai and Thiruppavai meaning “opening the portals of Shiva’s home”?

Thaliand

Hongkong

Malayasia

Singapore

An annual Giant Swing ceremony known as Triyampavai-Tripavai was held in major cities of Thailand until 1935, when it was abolished for safety reasons.[34] The name of the ceremony was derived from the names of two Tamil language Hindu chants: Thiruvempavai and Thiruppavai. It is known that Tamil verses from Thiruvempavai — poet pratu sivalai (“opening the portals of Shiva’s home”) — were recited at this ceremony, as well as the coronation ceremony of the Thai king.[35]

According to T.P. Meenakshisundaram, the name of the festival indicates that Thiruppavai might have been recited as well.[36] The swinging ceremony depicted a legend about how the god created the world. Outside shops, particularly in towns and rural areas, statues of Nang Kwak as the deity of wealth, fortune and prosperity (version of Lakshmi) are found.[37][38]

Hinduism came to Singapore between 7th and 10th century? Yes/No

Yes

No

Hindu religion and culture in Singapore can be traced back to the 7th century AD, when Temasek was a trading post of Srivijaya empire.[1] Chola empire of 10th century brought Hinduism to Singapore.

Which people’s Hinduism was known by these names, namely Tirta, Trimurti, Hindu, Agama Tirta, Siwa?

Sri Lanka

Philippines

Burma

Bali

In contemporary times, Hinduism in Bali is officially referred by Indonesian Ministry of Religion as Agama Hindu Dharma, but traditionally the religion was called by many names such as Tirta, Trimurti, Hindu, Agama Tirta, Siwa, Buda, and Siwa-Buda.[44] The terms Tirta and Trimurti emanate from Indian Hinduism, corresponding to Tirtha (pilgrimage to spirituality near holy waters) and Trimurti (Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva) respectively.

As in India, Hinduism in Bali grew with flexibility, featuring a diverse way of life. It includes many of the Indian spiritual ideas, cherishes legends and myths of Indian Puranas and Hindu Epics, as well as expresses its traditions through unique set of festivals and customs associated with a myriad of hyangs – the local and ancestral spirits, as well as forms of animal sacrifice that are not common in India.[44]

When and where was a first Ravan effigy ever, burnt in Australia?

Sydney 1998

Helensburgh 1984

Parramatta 2010

Murwilumbah 1971

1998 – Various Hindu organizations came together to form their first Hindu Council of Australia with members drawn from other Hindu organizations. First public celebration of Deepavali festival and Ravan dehan (burning of Ravan’s effigy) was celebrated by Hindu Council of Australia in Sydney.

After gaining its independence in 1957, Malaysia became a secular country? Yes/No

No

Yes

After Malaysia gained its independence from British colonial empire in 1957, it declared its official state religion as Islam, and adopted a discriminatory constitution as well as the Sedition Act of 1971 which limited public debate on Malaysia’s treatment of religion, language and citizenship policies.[15][16][17] In recent decades, there have been increasing reports of religious persecution of Hindus, along with other minority religions, by various state governments of Malaysia and its Sharia courts.[15][18] Hindu temples built on private property, and built long before Malaysian independence, have been demolished by Malaysian government officials in recent years.[19] Since the 1970s, there has been large scale emigration of Hindus (along with Buddhists and Christians) from Malaysia.[20][21][22]

To safeguard the interest of the Hindu organisations and Hindu temples, the Malaysia Hindu Sangam (MHS) was formed on 23 January 1965. The formation of MHS was greatly due to the ingenuity of the late Shri K. Paramalingam KMN., a barrister at law and was then the Director General of Public Trustee Department, assisted by the late Shri K. Ramanathan, Shri. G. V. Thevar, Shri Hari Chand Saradha, Shri. S. Palanivel Pillai, and Shri S. Dhuraiappah. Shri K. Ramanathan also was the president of Malaysian Indian Congress from 1950 – 1951 and the founder of Malaysian Arulneri Thirukkuttam.

Like Malayasia and Indoneasia, Hindus in Singapore also suffer religious prosecution? Yes/No

No

Yes

Unlike various states of Malaysia and Indonesia, Singapore places no restrictions on religious freedoms of Hindus. In Singapore, the Hindu festival of Deepavali is recognised as a national public holiday. Some non-Indians, usually Buddhist Chinese, participate in various Hindu activities.

The population of Hindus in Pakistan and in Bangladesh has remained stable since after their independence? Yes/No

After Pakistan gained independence from Britain on 14August 1947, 4.7 million of the country’s Hindus and Sikhs migrated to India, while 6.5 million Muslims migrated from India to Pakistan.[7] The 1998 census of Pakistan recorded less than 2.5 million Hindus.[14] The overwhelming majority of Hindus in Pakistan are concentrated in Sindh province.

Fiji Hindus are also classified into four varna system? Yes/No

No

Yes

The social structure among Fijian Hindus has lacked any caste structure.[11] Scholars[11][14][15] suggest that this lack of formation or observance of caste system among Fijian Hindus may have been because of the nature of work in Fijian plantations where everyone’s profession revolved around farming, because Fijian Hindus lived together from the time they arrived in coolie ships, and because of demographic constraints faced by them. Extensive exogamy has been observed among Hindus of Fiji since the earliest days of plantation settlements, just like in other major indentured Hindu labor settlements in Mauritius, Natal (South Africa) and the Caribbean.[16][17][18]

Like Indian Hindus, do Balenese Hindus also have four varnas of classification in their society? Yes/No

Yes

No

The social structure consisted of catur wangsa (four varnas) – brahmana (priests), satriya or “Deva” (warriors), waisya (merchants), and sudra (farmers, artisans, commoners).[52] There is no historical or contemporary cultural record of untouchables in Balinese Hindu society. The wangsa – termed castes by some accounts, classes by other accounts – were functional, not hierarchical nor segregated in Hindu society of Bali or Java. Further, there was social mobility – people could change their occupation and caste if they wished to.[53][54]

When did the first the Arya Samaj missionary arrive in French Guyana?

1910

1800

1947

1980

Since the late 1940s, reform movements have caught the attention of many Guyanese Hindus. The most important, the Arya Samaj movement (Aryan Society), was founded in India in 1875; the first Arya Samaj missionary arrived in Guyana in 1910.

The earliest influence of Hinduism in Philippines can be traced by archaeological evidence to be from around

9th century

5th century

18th century

The Laguna Copperplate Inscription (above) found in 1989 suggests Indian cultural influence in the Philippines by late 9th century AD, likely through Hinduism in Indonesia, prior to the arrival of European colonial empires in the 16th century. The 9th century Laguna Copperplate Inscription found in 1989, deciphered in 1992 to be Kavi script (Pallava alphabet) with Sanskrit words.[1]

The golden Agusan statue discovered in another part of Philippines in 1917 has also been linked to Hinduism and believed to be Shakti.[2] Juan Francisco suggests that the golden Agusan statue may be a representation of goddess Sakti of the Siva-Buddha (Bhairava) tradition found in Java, in which the religious aspect of Shiva is integrated with those found in Buddhism of Java and Sumatra. The Rajahnate of Butuan, in present-day Agusan del Norte and Butuan City, used Hinduism as its main religion along with indigenous Lumad nature-worships. A Hindu Tamil King of the Rajahnate of Cebu was also recorded.[4]

Many non-Balanese communities follow practices very akin to Hinduism? Yes/No

Yes

No

Among the non-Balinese communities considered to be Hindu by the government are, for example, the Dayak adherents of the Kaharingan religion in Kalimantan Tengah, where government statistics counted Hindus as 15.8% of the population as of 1995. Many Manusela and Nuaulu people of Seram follow Naurus, a syncretism of Hinduism with animist and Protestant elements.[6] Similarly, the Tana Toraja of Sulawesi have identified their animistic religion as Hindu. The Batak of Sumatra have identified their animist traditions with Hinduism.